68% of Europeans would like the EU to do more on security and defence policy, according to a Eurobarometer survey from March 2017.

While EU countries remain responsible for their defence and security - check out our fact sheets on the Common Security and Defence Policy and Foreign Policy - the European parliament has been a consistent and outspoken supporter of more cooperation on defence between EU countries for years. According to MEPs EU countries should show political commitment, increase investment, share information, pool resources and create synergies at EU level in order to better protect Europeans. These effortswould allow to create synergies, avoid duplications and increase efficiency to the benefit of all 28 EU countries without leading to the creation of a European army.

The economic crisis caused defence budgets to drop sharply as did investment in related research and development. Parliament sees collaborative research projects as a solution. The EU budget could be used to support EU countries working together. To maximise the output and the efficiency of defence spending, the European Commission came up with the European Defence Action Plan and the European Defence Fund in November 2016. MEPs have welcomed these initiatives as good ways for the EU to add value and support the financing of measures commonly agreed by member states.

Another weak point that Parliament would like to address is the plethora of different weapon systems in the EU, making it more difficult for countries to work together. MEPs have suggested that defence ministers could meet in a separate Council formation to better synchronise their planning and carry out a Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD).

Interoperability

The ability of different military organisations to conduct joint operations. Weak interoperability slows down the capacity to intervene

Geopolitical shifts in the EU's neighbourhood, together with terrorism, cyber-attacks and energy insecurity make it clear that no EU country can face these challenges alone. Both the Treaty on the EU (article 42.7) and Nato (article 5) foresee a mutual defence clause. Although MEPs advocate “strategic autonomy” at EU level, in Parliament’s view, a European defence union would strengthen the EU’s partnership with Natoand should be developed in this spirit.

The Commission is publishing five reflection papers until the end of June as a starting point for a debate on the future of European integration. Each paper is dedicated to a specific theme: Europe’s social dimension, globalisation, the economic and monetary union, defence and finances. The papers contain ideas and scenarios for what Europe could be like in 2025, but no specific proposals. The initiative finishes in mid-September when Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivers his annual state of the union address.